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Depending on which version of Superman, Clark often need very little if any sustenance to survive. In many settings he doesn't need food at all, he just enjoys eating.

This means Superman doesn't NEED a secret identity. He doesn't need a day job to pay the bills like the likes of Peter Parker. So it seems Clark ended up like a wondering nobody, much like the old The Hulk TV series. Maybe he got a job at an oil rig?

Yeah, but my point was, the usual Superman fare has Clark Kent's life and career mattering to him, for all that it's technically superfluous. (I mean, he could make a living out of crushing coal into diamond, or launching satellites into orbit or something, if he wanted money.)

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But "Clark Kent" is not a fake name. It is the name given to him by his Earth parents. And as the new trailer showed, his human family matters, which means his Earth name matters.

My impression is that, in this movie, Clark's powers (and him saving people with them) has a real downside to it (rather than being the unblemished positive it often gets portrayed as). Think of Clark getting the treatment of a Marvel Comics mutant. People fear him for his powers in spite of how he uses them for good.

Worse than that. At least Mutants had human parents. Clark is a genuine, full blood alien creature. We often forget about that because outside the 4th wall, Superman is an all-American creation. But Clark Kent as a character is foreign.

It wouldn't be so bad if DC Earth already had established contacts with galactic civilizations. Clark's problem is that revealing his origins would cause issues.

This would be moot by the end of the film though. As it seems an alien invasion is the finale of the film. Once everyone got used to having Space Aliens in the universe, Superman would be better accepted.

Yeah, but my point was, the usual Superman fare has Clark Kent's life and career mattering to him, for all that it's technically superfluous. (I mean, he could make a living out of crushing coal into diamond, or launching satellites into orbit or something, if he wanted money.)

Most versions of Superman (and older versions of Superboy) involve a costumed hero with a "S" shield just showing up one day, doing heroic deeds, and getting quickly embraced for it. People basically just roll with this mysterious superhero doing good for them, focusing on what he does more than on the hero himself.

In such a narrative, it makes sense for Clark Kent to want to make a life for himself outside of just superhero-ing (Superman himself has admitted that he couldn't handle being Superman 24/7 - He's not as OCD as Batman is ). That's what "Clark Kent" is for. In a world where Clark Kent is presumed to just be a normal human, he simply grows up and goes to Metropolis, and takes on a news reporter profession. And that makes sense, as his news reporter profession feeds nicely into him being Superman - Being a news reporter means it's his job to get scoops on political corruption, crime, etc... which then informs "Superman" to go combat it!

But in this movie, Clark Kent (not wearing a costume) is doing super-deeds (saving that bus-full of kids). This raises suspicions. Clark isn't necessarily casually presumed to be a normal human now. So perhaps to escape possible persecution, he high-tails it. Judging by some of the scenes in previous trailers, my best guess is that he high-tails it to Canada (as an Atlantic Canadian myself, these scenes are eerily familiar).

Eventually, he probably comes to the conclusion that this is a horrible waste of his powers (which, frankly, it is), and so he becomes Superman.

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Originally Posted by Vallen Chaos Valiant

Worse than that. At least Mutants had human parents. Clark is a genuine, full blood alien creature. We often forget about that because outside the 4th wall, Superman is an all-American creation. But Clark Kent as a character is foreign.

Good point. Clark has the "Area 51" concern to think about too, yes. I'm not sure how I feel here. An alien that's fluent in English, and that looks exactly like a human, would probably be someone we'd have a hard time treating like an alien. But the US Government may well feel differently for national security reasons, of course.

Eventually, he probably comes to the conclusion that this is a horrible waste of his powers (which, frankly, it is), and so he becomes Superman.

It likely also involved Clark embracing his Kryptonian heritage. In this film the final form of Clark as Superman is someone who acknowledges the culture of his blood parents, even though he never grew up in it.

The trailer suggests that Clark was perhaps rejecting his origins, because he loves his human parents too much. That he feared his family wouldn't BE his family if he accepts his heritage. Clark needed to realise he can do both. That he can be Super, AND a Man, at the same time.

It likely also involved Clark embracing his Kryptonian heritage. In this film the final form of Clark as Superman is someone who acknowledges the culture of his blood parents, even though he never grew up in it.

The trailer suggests that Clark was perhaps rejecting his origins, because he loves his human parents too much. That he feared his family wouldn't BE his family if he accepts his heritage. Clark needed to realise he can do both. That he can be Super, AND a Man, at the same time.

Good points.

Presuming we're right, I like this new take on Superman. It's a bit more realistic, I think.

I get the feeling that this universe's Kent were not as "supportive" of Clark when compared to the other versions. It's not as if they weren't supportive of Clark himself, but they weren't able to quite help Clark accept his origins. Basically, it's similar to the mental blocks Clark had in Smallville which prevented him from flying, since deep down he still thinks of himself as human and thus it wasn't until he embraced his Kryptonian destiny that he was able to truly fly. However, instead of a denial of his power, it's probably closer to a denial of his identity as a superpowered alien and embracing a wish for a "normal" life, closer to the DCAU's version of Superman.

Does anyone else notice the red, white, and blue "LEXCORP" lettering on top of a building on the left of the screen during the wideshot of the missiles/debris striking the skyscrapers? It’s around 2.18 of the trailer if I’m not mistaken.

I just wonder from the trailers if they are even going to dodge actually calling him Superman. Kind of like how Nolan dodged calling Selena Kyle Catwoman.

At the very least looks like it should be pretty fun to watch.

Well, it's a safe bet from the third full-length trailer that by the time a fully-costumed Superman is being held as a prisoner of the US Military he's still not known as "Superman" (hence, Lois Lane about to make that name suggestion).

My suspicion is that, yes, he may very well go most/all of the movie without being addressed as Superman. But I do think that Lois Lane will successfully refer to him as that at least once in the entire movie. In fact, her calling him that while he flies off into the sunset, might be a fitting way to end the movie.